Des Townson
a sailing legacy
by Brian Peet
 

Des Townson was deeply interested in people, life’s big questions, and in the beauty of yacht design. Conversation with him meandered through streams of spirituality, evolution of humankind, the hurts people inflict on each other, his pets, critical reviews of books and documentaries, and his belief in the vital necessity of beauty in manufactured objects

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Townson won the P-Class Tanner Cup aged 16 but he later avoided the stress of serious racing. Instead, shy, introverted and self-taught, he poured his energies into designing and building boats. ‘I decided very early on to only build what I designed and only design what I would build,’ he said.

He possessed an analytical mind, an innate feel for sailing boats and a wonderful eye for their visual balance. Approximately 3500 Townson boats have been built. His 82 designs included 50 keelers, 15 centreboarders, 11 rowing dinghies, two launches, one steam launch, one runabout, one canoe and the radio-controlled, one-design Electron.

Of these he built 219 Zephyrs, 89 Mistrals and about 20 keelboats including the distinctive, soulful styling of yachts such as Moonlight, Twilight, Starlight, Freelance and Talent. The 32ft Moonlight surprised the yachting fraternity when, in 1971, she won the medium offshore race in the New Zealand trials for the One Ton Cup selection in Auckland, against bigger yachts. Townson believed that if he had been blindfolded and put at the helm of any of his boats, he could name the design – the Twilight he described as a dancing boat.

The Zephyr and Mistral classes are still being built after more than 50 years.

The aftermath of the 1979 boat tax decreed that Townson would need to design to customers’ wishes if he wanted to continue building keelboats, but there was no joy in that. Instead, in 1987, he designed the Electron, which features in local clubs, America’s Cup teams and on superyachts around the world.

Des Townson – a sailing legacy, is a magnum opus of one of New Zealand’s most enigmatic designers, presented by his close friend Brian Peet. With photos and boat plans, it’s the full story behind the thousands of Townson yachts still sailing.

of Yamaha in 1994, prior to a highly successful career in Europe. He retired from ocean racing in 2021, after suffering a back injury while leading in the Global Challenge.